User Panel

Europe to issue tough new data-protection rules soon

The European Union will propose tough new rules in the coming days on how corporations handle Internet users' personal data, a long-awaited move that could have far-reaching implications for Web giants such as Google Inc and Facebook.

The EU will this week outline an overhaul of its 17-year- old data-protection policies addressing online advertising and social-networking sites. The bill, which includes stricter sanctions and will equip national data-protection authorities with powers to levy administrative sanctions and fines, will "become a trademark people recognize and trust worldwide," Reding said at a conference in Munich yesterday.www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-22/eu-s-reding-says-users-to-be-told-of-data-hacks-within-24-hours.html